


Malicious Intent

by honestgrins



Series: Challenge Accepted [5]
Category: The Vampire Diaries (TV)
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-12-29
Updated: 2015-12-29
Packaged: 2018-05-10 06:56:44
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,550
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5575679
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/honestgrins/pseuds/honestgrins
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Day 5 - Dark: When Caroline first turned, Damon saw her as a threat to the secret of vampires. Katherine decided to save the baby vampire for her own uses.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Malicious Intent

"What are you going to do," Caroline asked warily, yet holding onto whatever shred of hope that Damon could help her.

Stroking the bloody hair out of her eyes, Damon smiled. "I'm going to kill you," he answers gently, creepy smile unnerving her almost more than his words.

She scrambled to her feet in hopes of defending herself, but the stake looked dangerous in his hand. Caroline could see Damon about to lunge, but even her new vampire reflexes couldn't process the moment he dropped to the ground, head facing the wrong direction.

Sobs still wracking her chest, Caroline looked up to see Elena in front of her. "Get away from me," Caroline yelled, shrinking back. "You killed me!"

"You bet I did," Elena smirked, strutting toward her. This was an Elena she had never known before, all sleek movements and dominant presence.

"Why did you kill me, Elena," Caroline cried, wrapping her arms tight around herself. She knew that her friend could truly detest her at times, but murder went far beyond mean girl politics.

Flashing in front of the blonde, Elena pushed the hair out of her eyes just like Damon did. Rather than cowering, Caroline shoved the other girl back, the aggression causing her fangs to drop instinctually. Expecting to see shock and fear in Elena, though, Caroline only saw jubilant satisfaction.

"Little Caroline Forbes has claws," she crowed. "You are going to be perfect."

She looked over to Damon's prone body before glancing up to the baby vampire. "My name is Katherine," she introduced herself. "I'll tell you all about why Elena looks like me and how that bitch stole my life. But first, we need to get out of here before he wakes up."

Still breathing hard, Caroline started to calm by focusing on Damon. The fear she had felt with him melted into rage, which she held in her gaze toward the vampire in front of her. "Why should I trust you?"

Smirking mischievously, Katherine just shrugged. "If I wanted you dead," she pointed out, "I would have let Damon finish the job. I turned you because I think you have potential. The real question is, are you willing to live up to that potential?"

Looking back down at Damon, Caroline swallowed. Between the two evils that apparently knew about her condition, at least Katherine hadn't tried to kill her. Again.

"Fine," Caroline nodded.

With an elated smile, Katherine challenged, "Catch me if you can, Goldilocks." She flashed away, giving Caroline no choice but to follow.

* * *

Katherine Pierce became her mentor in all things vampire. It wasn't out of any affection or fondness for her young sire; she just needed Caroline to be able to survive until Klaus came calling. She had tried keeping the girl in high school, if for no other reason than to remind the Salvatores and their precious Elena that Katherine was capable of ruining all their elaborate plans. Caroline's natural nosiness also served for decent intel gathering, even if the blonde had no idea the danger she was putting her friends in.

With time, though, Caroline learned that her friends didn't really care. Once she was lost to Katherine, never considering that she only did so to avoid Damon, Caroline was a loose end that posed a threat to Mystic Falls. Damon even outed her to Liz, which made Caroline flee to Katherine full time.

Despite her annoyance that Caroline would be of no further use against the Salvatores, Katherine took the opportunity to give the blonde greater responsibility: help Tyler survive the transition to werewolf and keep him loyal.

The problem with her plan was Katherine's overestimation of Caroline's loyalty to begin with. The girl was so amenable to her demands, the older vampire has assumed that she had been so completely broken with the loss of the life she had known. Caroline did feel broken, but helping Tyler had helped her accept her new reality. The more he lost control to the wolf, the more confident Caroline became in hers.

Being Katherine's underling was keeping her alive, but she also knew the doppelgänger would stake her without blinking the minute her usefulness expired.

* * *

The time had come. A thousand years of feeling incomplete would come to an end, and Klaus let that knowledge lend a bounce to his stride. Katerina had told him about the vampire and werewolf she had chained in the Lockwood cellar, though a large part of him wanted to use the impertinent shrew for the vampire sacrifice. He would have finally rid the earth of her insufferable annoyance, with the added poetry of completing the ritual she had ruined 500 years before.

Shaking his head, the soon-to-be hybrid descended into the musty cellar. He spared a glance for the vampire, a pretty little blonde. His attention quickly zeroed in, however, on the other blonde woman hustling to unchain his young wolf. All three pairs of eyes shot to him upon entry. "And who might you be," he asked the strange woman. The low, British accent often endeared people to him, but the threat in his voice was clear.

The vampire, still chained, looked to the other two before sighing. "She's a wolf," she answered, resigned. "Wolves look out for their pack, you know. Or not, I suppose."

Klaus cocked his head to focus on the girl. Such a cheeky answer from one he had every intention of killing, yet he found himself wanting to smile. "A curse from my mother that will soon be rectified," he promised. Turning to the wolves that were still frozen in fear, his smile turned terrifying. "But I only need one wolf to do so." Moving so quickly even Caroline could barely see him, Klaus ripped out the female werewolf's heart.

Even as Tyler broke down, his one chance at escape literally dead at his feet, Klaus noticed the grim satisfaction in Caroline's eyes. Perhaps she and the wolf had history? Breaking her chains, he held out his hand. "Shall we, love?"

Caroline scoffed, standing on her own before heading to Tyler. She pulled him up and yoked him to her side. "Please don't act like you're doing us a favor by killing us, and let's just get it over with."

An odd feeling settled in Klaus's stomach. Something about the blonde's words upset him, almost as though he didn't want her to die.

* * *

She had been pissed when Katherine chained her and Tyler in the cellar. Pissed, but not surprised. That feeling got worse when Jules showed up to rescue Tyler, who didn't even ask her to rescue Caroline, too. Caroline Forbes was going to die. That sucked.

Klaus definitely seemed as dangerous as Katherine's stories painted him to be. Caroline had considered playing up the "scared little girl" card, but she doubted that Klaus had scared the hell out of Katherine Pierce by being a merciful immortal. Instead, she'd face her inevitable death with her chin held high and a hail Mary escape the first chance she got.

As they walked to the ritual site, however, Klaus's hand burned on the middle of her back. He was too fast for her to make a break for it, and that hand felt too good through her jacket. Had it been so long since she had real contact with another person? Shaking her head clear of the distracting thoughts, Caroline decided she might as well get the answers that had been bugging her.

"If you hate Katherine so much, why not sacrifice her?"

With a slight smirk, Klaus briefly met her eyes as they walked. "I may despise her, but she offered a good deal," he explained. "I don't like going back on my word."

Knowing Katherine and the anger she incurred, though, Caroline couldn't believe that he would just let her go after everything. "So, five hundred years and a baby vamp later, you're just calling it good? That sounds…soft."

"Careful, sweetheart," Klaus growled, yanking a little harder on Tyler's chains, bound by the wrists and trailing behind.

"What," she asked innocently. "Can't a girl enjoy a little candor while being lead to her death?"

Scoffing, Klaus just pushed them a bit faster. "I'm starting to realize why Katherine chose you to be the sacrifice," he muttered. "You talk too much."

"She chose me because I was the easiest mark," Caroline shrugged. "At least, that's why she turned me in the first place. I was close enough to the Salvatores that they'd feel threatened, but not so threatened that they retaliate in my honor."

"The Salvatores didn't care to save you," he asked, curiosity rising in him over this little vampire that seemed so ready to turn her back on her existence.

"Why would they," Caroline snorted. "I took Katherine's focus off Elena, risked the danger of helping Tyler, and gave the Council a target that wasn't them. Hell, had Damon killed me when he wanted to, he'd be up a creek right now."

Klaus narrowed his eyes at her response. "Why did Damon want to kill you?"

"He was convinced I couldn't handle being a vampire," she said. "That I would go on a killing spree and get them all killed in the retaliation. Ironic that he's killed more people since he's been here than I have altogether."

"And what's your number, love?" The odd note of fondness in his voice did not go unnoticed by either of them, both ignoring Tyler's presence behind them.

Caroline looked away, focusing on the woods around them. "The night I turned, I killed a carnival worker," she answered. "I was just so hungry, though I managed not to kill the nurse before. Katherine saved me from Damon's stake, though she didn't care if I killed as I fed. It wasn't until the Council was after me that she started bringing me blood bags so I could stay hidden. That's worked pretty well for me."

"Blood bags," Klaus sniffed. "That's no way for our kind to eat."

"It's not like it matters anymore," Caroline pointed out, confused by his apparent frustration with her feeding habits. "You're just going to kill me anyway."

Klaus nodded, staying silent as they finished their trek through the trees. However, he wasn't so sure of her declaration.

* * *

In the end, it was actually Damon he used as the vampire sacrifice.

The Salvatores had put together a last ditch attempt to save Elena, completely ignoring Caroline and Tyler in the process. Annoyed by their useless effort, and oddly by their lack of caring for the blonde, Klaus threw Damon into the circle of fire instead. Caroline even surprised him by holding Stefan back from jumping into the flames, the loyalty she felt still unable to let her stand idly by in a blatant suicide mission.

The two younger vampires watched as Klaus killed Tyler, Damon, and Elena to break his curse. He felt the power flow through him, and the pull of the moon was incredibly difficult to ignore. Wanting to put off turning, though, he needed to talk to Elijah. He had half expected his brother to attack him at his weakest, but his assurances that Katerina was safe must have been enough to sway his brother's heart.

Gasping breath, Klaus finally managed to speak. "Brother," he spat with exertion, "take the girl and Stefan to the apartment. I shall meet you there soon." Throwing one last glance to an oddly serene Caroline, Klaus quickly turned and took off in wolf form.

* * *

Stefan was a basketcase, Katherine was tied up, and Elijah couldn't stop staring at her. "What," Caroline asked anxiously.

"I'm curious as to why my brother didn't kill you as planned," Elijah said. "It was my understanding he didn't want to engage with the Salvatores."

"You've met Damon," Caroline answered as though it were obvious. "I'm sure you can understand why your brother would want to kill him."

Stefan's head whipped up, but he didn't move from his curled up position in the corner. Elijah had already compelled him to keep his daylight ring on, a necessity after two attempts to open the curtains and burn alive. "Shut up, Caroline," he whispered.

"I'd be polite to the lady," Klaus said, grandly striding into the apartment. "She seems a bloodthirsty thing, and in such a delightful way."

"You hate that I drink from blood bags," Caroline said automatically, confused at his glee for her "bloodthirsty" self.

"I meant in personality," Klaus clarified, moving closer to stroke the hair out of her eyes. Unlike when Damon and Katherine had done something similar, Caroline felt…cherished. "Though I look forward to the possibilities," he continued in a low, seductive voice.

"Niklaus," Elijah broke in with a perturbed voice. "Are you prepared to release Katerina and our siblings now?" As hard as he had worked over the millennium to help Niklaus break his curse, all Elijah wanted was a few years of peace with Katerina and a reunion with the rest of his family.

"About that," Klaus said, mock regret flooding his face. "I'm afraid I can only grant you one of those things."

Seething, Elijah flashed his brother up against the wall. "You promised me, Niklaus-"

"I promised you," Klaus interrupted, "that I would reunite you with our siblings. I merely reassured you that Katerina was safe, which she is." He widely gestured to the doppelgänger still bound and gagged in the chair. "I made no promises for her future."

"Niklaus!"

"Greta is waiting for you downstairs," Klaus gloated. "She'll take you to our family, and I shall leave you to your grief. But Katerina dies today."

Elijah's body was tense with rage, but with a sad look toward Katherine, he flashed away without a word. He needed his family, and nearly a century was far too long to miss them.

Practically giddy with joy, Klaus walked over to Stefan. "Go on, mate," he whispered conspiratorially. "I just needed to keep you supervised while I was in wolf form. I'll be out of your hair and Mystic Falls for good, so I'd forego any pesky revenge schemes that will just get you and everyone you've ever met killed."

Stefan's eyes defiantly went to Caroline, who just shrugged. Her loyalty had already saved him once, but she might not expend the effort to do it again. "I'd run while you can, Stefan," she said simply.

Betrayal clear in his eyes, Stefan flashed out before he could cause any trouble.

"Now," Klaus said, turning to Caroline. "I find myself quite intrigued by you, love. If you're going to interfere with Katerina's fate, though, I must insist that you don't."

Caroline scoffed, something dark stirring in her expression. "The only interference I'm hoping for is a slight deviation in your plan to kill her," she said, staring down the affronted doppelgänger glaring back.

"And what might that be?" Klaus sounded amused, which Caroline took as indulgence.

"I want to do it," Caroline whispered.

Klaus expected her grin to be twisted with evil intentions as she requested to end her mentor's life. He was pleasantly surprised to see a bright smile without a hint of regret or pain. He was even more surprised to see him returning it with a beaming grin of his own.

"Have at it, love."


End file.
